Lagunitas Censored

Lagunitas Censored (bottle)
Petaluma, CA
5.9% ABV

Gotta love Lagunitas. Gotta love, that is, if you're at all a fan of West-Coast hoppy ales of various varieties. Luckily, I am. So....

Pours dark red, mostly transparent, with suspended bubbles all through the glass. Thin white bubbly head that becomes soapscum pretty much immediately. Significant lacing. Lagunitas labels this one as a "copper ale," which generally refers to color, but I get a significant coppery aroma here, possibly by power of suggestion. Malty, slightly dry aroma, similar to a nice ESB.

Malty dryness also dominates the flavor, with a nice dry hoppy finish and aftertaste. Hops are less prominent than anticipated, although as the beer warms I get a more classic West-Coast hop flavor. Mouthfeel is moderately thick, with a high amount of carbonation and some significant hoppiness.

Overall this is a very nice beer, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to someone interested in ambers. Not enough fruity notes. This, as mentioned above, reminds me more of a dry ESB than an amber, but fans of Laguintas will probably get a lot from this beer.

My overall BA rating: 3.8/5